This invention relates to seals for wall-mounted plumbing fixtures such as shower heads and tub spouts that are supplied with water through a water supply pipe projecting through an aperture in a nearby wall, and, more particularly, to a collar that is mounted on a water supply pipe to prevent water from infiltrating the aperture.
Water supplies for shower heads and tub spouts are typically provided by one of two standard methods. In the first method, a 90 degree elbow fitting is securely fastened behind the finished wall at the level required for the tub spout or shower head connection. A precise length of a water supply pipe with male threaded nipples on each end is installed blindly through a hole or aperture in the finished wall and onto the elbow fitting enclosed within the wall. The tub spout or shower arm is then threaded directly onto the open end of the pipe. In a second method used for tub spouts, copper or other rigid pipe is stubbed out of the wall through the aperture and a specially designed compression-type tub spout is slid over the pipe and secured by means of an integral clamp or set screw built into the spout's housing.
Unfortunately, the connection made between the pipe and shower arm or between the pipe and tub spout may loosen over time, or, as in the case of the second method above, the o-ring necessary for the compression-type tub spout to seal against the pipe may become damaged during installation. In either case, due to a loose or faulty connection, water can trickle from the connection point rearward along the pipe either as a small jet of pressurized water or simply via adherence of the water to the pipe through surface tension. Although an escutcheon is sometimes provided with shower head assemblies it is typically not adapted to fit tightly and seal against the pipe. In the case of tub spouts, the housing of the spout is usually simply pressed against the wall. Although caulk may be applied around the housing to prevent water in the tub from splashing behind the housing, leakage within the housing itself may travel unobstructed along the stub out pipe and enter the wall through the aperture.
It is known that plumbers will modify a polyethylene escutcheon, of the type sold as the Trim Tite™ shallow escutcheon and listed on page 191 of the Sioux Chief Manufacturing Co, Inc. catalog, to create a seal for preventing water from traveling along the stub out pipe and entering the wall through the aperture. The seal is typically formed by trimming the peripheral leg or wall from the escutcheon to form a cupped, annular collar. Although such a modified escutcheon may provide a seal around the pipe, the peripheral edge does not typically form a consistent seal with the wall thereby allowing water to infiltrate behind the escutcheon and into the wall through the aperture.
It is clear that there exists a need for a device for use in association with the stub out pipe for fixtures such as tub spouts and shower heads that forms a watertight seal around the stub out pipe to block water from moving past it, and which forms a seal with the wall while covering the aperture therein.